Driving down the Pacific Coast Highway in August with the cool ocean breeze blowing in our hair, Daniel and I were returning from a remarkable fundraising appointment with some old friends of mine. I was thinking to myself at the time, “I don’t get it, Lord. Daniel is bright, winsome, and compassionate. What is holding his heart back from fully engaging in this fund-raising process?”

Daniel graduated summa cum laude in Mathematics last May from Long Beach State. We met last winter over the phone while I was on the recruiting trail. He befriended Saudi students at his university and looked for ways to introduce them to Jesus. We shared an instant connection.

Daniel applied for and was accepted to our iEDGE program. His dream was to spend two years learning how to reach out to young people in a foreign country with the Good News of Jesus. The only problem was doing the fundraising. He could do the math, but where would he find the courage? If God calls, God provides. But we must still take steps of faith. Ask, seek, knock, and the door will be opened for you.

Early August arrived. Daniel was languishing. Deadlines were approaching. Decisions needed to be made. It was decided that I would hop on a plane to see what was sidetracking this precious son of the Living God. We had a wonderfully good time talking about music, mathematics, and the Promises of God. He was an excellent tutor to me on negotiating the labyrinth of West Coast driving. Eight lanes of bumper-to-bumper traffic. Oh joy!

During our last time together that weekend over breakfast at Denny’s I asked him, “Are you planning to ask me if we would support you?” He wasn’t. I told him, “You have the passion and heart to go, but if you know that you are called you will ask anyone and everyone if they will be a part of your team.”

Just this week I received this note from him: “Greg, I gotta say I was nervous if not outright terrified when you were coming out. That weekend is one of the most memorable of this summer (I’m still sorry about that traffic though). The love and compassion and encouragement you poured out combatted the lies I was too entrenched to notice. Thanks for allowing God to already use you in such powerful ways in my life.”

I am so excited to report that Daniel together with the rest of his team pictured above reached full-funding and departed for their overseas ministry assignment today!